Mystic Calling：Stone of Glory-Chapter 496: Here we go again
Just as Ethan was about to take a breather,
A surge of overwhelming dark energy rippled through the sky again.
BZZZZT!
BOOOOOOMMMM!
"You really think you can kill me with that pathetic excuse for power?"
The Dark Sovereign’s figure reappeared, floating ominously in midair. Waves of dark energy, laced with spatial force, sealed off the entire area like a prison.
Ethan’s brow furrowed. "Where the hell did this thing come from? And why is it so damn strong?"
But no one had an answer for him.
Then, out of the corner of his eye, Ethan spotted something strange—a swirling vortex on a nearby wall, pulsing with spatial energy.
BZZZT! A tether of power connected the vortex directly to the Dark Sovereign. Ethan quickly analyzed the energy signature and realized something shocking—
"This is just a projection? A damn clone?"
Even as a projection, the Dark Sovereign was insanely powerful. If the real body showed up... he didn’t even want to imagine the kind of destruction it could unleash.
No time to waste. Ethan blinked forward, appearing right in front of the vortex. He raised his palm and slammed it down hard.
A surge of raw power poured into the vortex, and with a sound like shattering glass, the swirling portal cracked and exploded like a broken mirror.
Up in the sky, the Dark Sovereign’s body jolted violently, nearly falling from the air. The terrifying energy she’d been radiating just moments ago instantly weakened by half.
Ethan’s eyes lit up. "Hell yeah. Nailed it."
"Focus your attacks! It’s just a projection!" he shouted.
Seraphina and Cicero didn’t hesitate for a second. They channeled every ounce of their power and launched a devastating combined strike.
The Dark Sovereign let out a twisted, inhuman shriek.
"You filthy insect! You dare destroy my spatial link? I’ll crush you with my own hands!"
She was furious now—completely unhinged. In a blink, she teleported right in front of Ethan, her aura flaring with murderous intent.
But before she could strike, Seraphina and Cicero closed in. Their combined energy formed a blinding beam of light that slammed into the Dark Sovereign’s back.
Another scream tore through the air. Cracks began to spread across her body, fragments breaking off and disintegrating into nothing.
Ethan didn’t waste the opening. He threw a punch with everything he had—every last drop of strength—and sent the Dark Sovereign flying.
Seraphina and Cicero kept up the pressure, unleashing blow after blow.
The once-unstoppable Dark Sovereign was now completely overwhelmed, unable to fight back. The three of them pounded her relentlessly, their attacks tearing her apart piece by piece.
Chunks of her shattered form rained down, vanishing into the void.
And then, finally, she was gone. Dissolved into nothingness.
Ethan exhaled, finally letting himself relax.
DING!
"Congratulations, Player Valkarion! You have defeated a projection of The Dark Sovereign! Rewards: +200,000 Dungeon Reputation, 30 billion gold, 3 million units of each core resource, and 500 Tier-13 Legendary Units (selectable or random)!"
Ethan’s jaw dropped.
"All that... just for taking down a projection?"
This reward was way bigger than what he got for defeating Malenthia.
With this kind of haul, his power and resources had just skyrocketed.
But the real question was—where was the Dark Sovereign’s actual lair? If he could find it and take her down for real, the rewards might be off the charts.
Just as he was riding the high, another notification popped into his mind.
Dungeon Conquest Progress: 1.5%.
"...Seriously?"
At this rate, who knew how long it would take to conquer the entire Dungeon?
Still, this place wasn’t safe to linger. With a sigh, Ethan gathered Seraphina, Cicero, and the rest of the team, and they quickly made their exit.
Now that Emerald Castle had grown into a true powerhouse, its influence was shaking the entire Dungeon. The energy waves radiating from the territories it had conquered were impossible to ignore—many of the Dungeon’s lords had already taken notice.
Especially deep within the earth veins, in a shadow-drenched palace buried far below the surface...
A massive, terrifying figure cloaked in darkness let out a furious roar.
She was absolutely livid.
"How is this possible?! What the hell happened?!"
"Who dared to intervene personally?!"
"There’s no way someone like him could’ve destroyed my projection!"
BOOM!
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE—
With just a single roar, an endless surge of violet-black energy exploded from her body. The space around her twisted violently, and the palace trembled as several massive stone pillars shattered into rubble.
The witches standing nearby trembled, frozen in fear.
None of them dared to lift their heads, let alone meet The Dark Sovereign’s gaze.
But if you looked closely, you’d notice something chilling—
The power radiating from these witches was on par with Malenthia’s.
"My Sovereign," one of them finally spoke, her voice low and reverent. "Please, calm your wrath. We’ve already locked onto their location. If you permit it, I’ll lead a battalion of demon soldiers to crush them and avenge your honor."
The Dark Sovereign snapped her head up.
Her eyes burned with murderous rage.
"You get 1,000 troops."
"Flatten Emerald Castle. Leave nothing standing." 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖
The witch dropped to her knees and bowed deeply. "As you command."
Then she turned and walked toward the far end of the throne hall. As she reached the edge, a strange, swirling spatial vortex appeared out of nowhere. Without hesitation, she stepped inside and vanished.
Back at Emerald Castle, after taking down the Dark Sovereign’s projection, Ethan had gathered all his forces within the castle walls.
And now? He was stacked. His army was stronger than ever, and with Cicero and Seraphina having leveled up, he’d unlocked even more hero summoning slots.
But he wasn’t in a rush to summon anyone new just yet.
Instead, he focused on consolidating his forces and letting everyone recover.
Conquering the entire Dungeon was proving to be a monumental task. After all the blood, sweat, and near-death battles, he’d only managed to clear 1.5% of it. The remaining 98.5%? Still a giant question mark.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
...
BZZZZT!
Just as he was deep in thought, a wave of dark energy suddenly spread across the land outside the castle. Dozens of spatial rifts tore open in the air, and from them emerged hordes of armored soldiers—hulking, axe-wielding creatures with twisted, monstrous features.
The moment Ethan got the alert, he rushed up to the battlements.
And when he saw the endless tide of armored demon soldiers flooding the horizon, his expression darkened.
The energy rolling off these things... it was intense.
These weren’t your average grunts.
"Damn it. Here we go again," he muttered.
Before he could even react—
BZZZT! Another vortex shimmered open in the sky, and a new figure stepped through.
She was tall, curvy, and wrapped in a flowing black-and-purple robe that clung to her like a second skin. In her hand, she held a bizarre, rune-covered staff that pulsed with dark energy.
From the aura she gave off, she was clearly a witch—but unlike any Ethan had encountered before.
She sneered as she looked down at the castle.
"So this is Emerald Castle? My Sovereign overestimated this dump. It’s nothing but a pile of rubble. I could wipe it out with a flick of my wrist."
Zzzzzzzzz...
As she spoke, a massive orb of swirling black and violet energy formed above her palm.
The power radiating from it was wild and unstable—eerily similar to the energy ball the Dark Sovereign’s projection had used before.
Ethan’s eyes narrowed. No doubt about it—this witch was one of the Dark Sovereign’s elites.
The next second, the orb came crashing down from the sky, slamming into the castle’s outer energy barrier.
BOOM!
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE—
The impact tore a jagged crack through the shield, and the entire Emerald Castle shook violently under the force of the blast.
Ethan’s pupils dilated.
Without wasting a second, he pulled up the system interface and scanned the witch’s stats.
